Keen's Moving Castle
by KidatHeart5
Summary: When Crane investigates mysterious happenings at a nearby valley, he accidentally gets sent to another world…with humans! Unable to speak regularly to the strange people, he must seek the help of a young witch who could help him get home.
1. One Strange Day

Crane awoke one morning in the barracks by the Jade Palace. He expected it to be like any other day. Recently, though, a dream kept plaguing him for the last several days. The images that played in his head were as vivid as sunlight itself. In his dream, he would meet strange creatures with no fur, no feathers, nothing that would make them animal. He would then see streams of light that resembled chi, only blue. The last image he'd see would be of one of the creatures he was sure was a girl. She was holding a ball of blue light in her hands and told him, _"I can help you…"_

The dream confused Crane and he constantly thought, _What does it mean?_

He went to the Sacred Hall of Warriors and was about to enter when –

 _WHOOSH!_

Crane jumped in surprise when an arrow hit the floor. For a moment, he thought that they were under attack – again – but when he looked closer, he saw a scroll tied to it. He took the scroll and went inside the hall. To his relief, Shifu was by the Moon Pool meditating.

Shifu asked without looking, "Yes?"

Crane walked towards him and said, "Master Shifu, a scroll was just delivered outside. I thought you'd want to read it."

Shifu said as Crane gave him the scroll, "Thank you, Crane." He then opened the scroll and read it. When he finished, he put it down and said, "There seems to be strange activity in the Valley of Bones."

Crane gulped, "The Valley of Bones?"

"Yes. And you are to go there."

Crane jumped in surprise and cried, "What?! Why me?"

"Because you delivered the message to me…and you were having a strange dream for the last week."

Crane sputtered, "But…how did you know?"

Shifu smirked, "I noticed the dream interpretation scrolls were opened. Crane, the universe is telling you to go to the Valley of Bones. I believe it will provide you with an answer to your dream."

Crane sighed and said, "Yes, Master." He bowed to him just before he went out of the hall and flew to the Valley of Bones.

Crane said to himself as he flew, "The Valley of Bones. What was the universe thinking? Why do I need to go to the Valley of Bones for answers about my dream?"

When he saw a desolate patch ahead, he dove down and landed on the barren, black ground of the Valley of Bones. As he had expected, the valley was foggy and the charred ground was laden with bones. Legend had it that the valley was once lush and green. It was also one of the hotspots for chi and a sanctuary for all who mastered it. But all that came crashing down when, prior to his battle with Oogway, Kai took the chi of many masters in the valley and burned all who resisted, scorching the entire haven in the process. Though it broke Crane's heart to hear such a story, the unsettling scenery before him still creeped him out.

Just then, he saw a skull rattle. It startled him and he wondered if it was such a good idea coming to the valley. When his nerves calmed down considerably, he decided to look closely at the skull.

" _SCREEE!"_

Crane yelped and jumped back before seeing that the mouse-like creature that popped out of one of the skull's eye sockets was harmless. It then leaped out of the skull and scurried into the mist. What the creature exactly was perplexed Crane. He had never seen anything like it before. He was sure that it wasn't native to China.

He thought to himself, _So where did it come from?_

Just then, he saw a green flash in the mist. His heart dropped at the possibility that Kai had inexplicably returned. He thought as he crept forward into the mist, _No, it couldn't be Kai again, could it? I thought Po got rid of him._

After a few more tentative steps, he saw a large silhouette. He let out a tiny gasp before realizing that the silhouette was much too blocky to even be Kai. To give himself some confidence, Crane ruffled his wings and whispered to himself, "Wings of Courage."

When he got closer, he was relieved to see that it was a tiny hut. It looked run-down and in disrepair. Crane stared at it for a few moments until a green flash shone from within. His nerves returned as he reconsidered the likelihood that Kai was here again. But what would he be doing here of all places? Crane had to know, so he cautiously entered the hut.

He called out in a quiet voice, "Hello? Is anyone in here? Come out so I can see you."

Another green flash took him by surprise. He considered backing out now and reporting to Master Shifu. He then heard a voice cry, "Oh, no!"

At the sound of the distressed voice, Crane flapped to the room where it had originated. When he entered the room, he was surprised to see an elderly goat trying to manage a smoking cauldron. What surprised Crane more was that the cauldron was spewing green smoke…and each tendril of smoke touched an object and made it disappear!

Crane asked despite his own stunned state, "What's going on?!"

The goat lady answered, "It's my magic cauldron! It's boiling over! I tried to use chi to start the portal, but now the cauldron's going haywire!"

"Do you know how to stop it?!"

"I'm trying to! I'm trying to!"

Just then, a pair of smoky hands rose from the cauldron and lunged from it. Crane saw they were heading for the goat, so he pushed her aside and cried, "Look out!"

To her horror, Crane got caught in the hands' grip and smoke started to surround him. She cried out to him, "Don't worry! I'll find a way to bring you back! I promise!"

This worried Crane, but before he could think, he disappeared in a cloud of smoke.


	2. A New World

Crane had his eyes closed when the smoke spirited him away. When he heard people cheering, he slowly opened his eyes. He looked all around and saw that he was in an alley.

He thought, _What is this place?_

He then looked in the direction of the light and saw a strange creature on the steps. A mass of beings like it had their backs to the steps and were waving their hats.

Crane's eyes widened as he thought, _No. It couldn't be…_

He slowly crept up the steps and tried to get a closer look at the creatures. He let out a gasp when he realized that these were the same kind of beings in his dream! He could hardly believe it. But where exactly was he? The pink-and-yellow flag he just saw being carried down the street didn't look familiar. He didn't even recognize the blue-and-red crest with a strange symbol within it.

He decided to fly up to get a bigger view. Even though the space between roofs was narrow, Crane managed to slip between them and ascend into the sky. Suddenly, a gray cloud obscured his vision. He thought it was just a regular cloud, but this one stung his eyes and burned his lungs. He lost his focus and fell down to the ground coughing. He tumbled off the roof before he was met by hard ground. When Crane regained his senses, he got up and grabbed his hat.

He thought as he was putting it on again, _Well, looks like I'll have to walk._

Crane walked down the small alleyway and looked all around for any signs of familiarity. He continued thinking, _This is just_ way _too weird to be China. I must be somewhere else. Just where_ is _somewhere else? Well, at least it's quiet here. Nothing bad can happen in an alleyway, can it?_

Just then, he saw two of the strange creatures in blue uniforms. He went up to them - thinking they were officers just like the ones back home - and said, "Excuse me. I was wondering where I am."

One officer turned to Crane and said, "Hey, buddy, looks like they brought in a new exotic bird."

Crane cleared his throat and said, "Well, yes. I'm not from around here. If you could just –"

The other officer laughed, "It makes funny squawks!"

Crane was taken aback by that. Did he really sound weird here? He stuttered, "I-I admit that my voice is not exactly low, but you don't need to make fun of me."

Suddenly, the two officers stiffened up and stepped away from Crane in unison. He was surprised to see that and wondered what was going on.

A voice then spoke from above, "Don't hold it against them. They're actually not all that bad."

Crane gasped as he looked up and saw another bird descending from the sky. The sunlight radiating behind her made her look heavenly. When she landed, he was astounded by her. She was about his height and had white feathers, a long neck, a short orange beak, short blonde hair (or was it fur?) on her head, and a black lump on the bridge of her beak. She also had a pink shirt and short blue pants. He could've sworn he had never seen anyone of her kind before.

He gulped and then said, "A…are you some kind of goose?" When he saw that the bird was surprised by that question, he face-palmed with his foot at the inadequacy of his words. He then apologized, "I'm sorry. It's just that I've never seen anyone like you before."

She smiled, "I suppose you haven't. I'm a swan right now, though it isn't actually my true form."

"Then what is-"

"Shh!" She then turned her head as if she sensed something. She whispered, "Don't get alarmed, but I'm being followed. Act normal."

Having no other option at this point, Crane followed the swan down the alleyway. After walking several feet, he heard whooshing and gurgling behind him. He peeked behind him to see strange ooze-like monsters seep out of the walls.

The swan whispered, "Sorry. Looks like you're involved."

Crane gasped when he saw more monsters in front of them. He asked the swan, "How do we get out of this?"

The swan turned onto another path while saying, "This way."

Crane ran with her as the black creatures tailed them. When more of the monsters blocked their way, the swan asked, "You can fly, right?"

"Yeah! What's your point?"

"Take off!"

Just like that, the two birds flew off into the air and above the houses. Crane looked all around and appreciated the view.

"Wow! It looks so beautiful up here!"

The swan smiled, "But of course. I do this often."

"But what about the strange clouds? Don't you get caught in them?"

"I bet you're talking about the smoke and steam. Well, I do get caught in them sometimes, but I always get my focus back."

"You have to teach me sometime."

"Well, not right now, but I'm sure I'll see you again."

"But when?"

At that moment, his stomach grumbled. He hadn't eaten much since he left for the Valley of Bones.

The swan said, "There's a bakery downtown. Want to see the sights while we're flying there?"

"Well, I am kind of curious, so why not?"

"Great!"

As they flew towards the bakery, Crane was amazed by the festivities below him. He laughed, "This is incredible! Do you live here?"

The swan answered, "I visit the town, but I have my own place."

"Oh, really? Where?"

"Someplace far from the public eye."

"Well, I can see why, since you're a bird." He caught himself and embarrassedly added, "Or only part-bird, like you say. So what are you when you're not a swan?"

"I'm a human, actually."

Crane stopped in midair as he processed that and asked, "Wait, a human?" He then pointed his talon to the people below and asked, "Are humans those creatures down there?"

The swan answered amusedly, "Well, yes. I take it you've never seen humans before, huh?"

Crane shook his head and answered, "Nuh-uh. The creatures I see back home are pandas, snakes, tigers, you name it. They're all animals, no humans."

"Wow. You must come from another dimension."

Crane was startled to hear that and cried, "Dimension?! I'm not in my own dimension?!"

"I don't think so. That's why you couldn't speak fluently to the officers. You can speak like they do, but all they're going to hear from you are squawks and various calls that cranes do."

"Wait, how'd you know what I was?"

The swan answered, "Well, your kind exists in this world, but they don't talk and wear clothing like you do."

While she resumed flying, Crane just flapped there dumbfounded before he focused again and followed her. He told her, "There's just so much I need to learn about this world."

The swan told him, "Well, we're here." When they landed in front of the bakery, she continued, "Don't worry. I'll give you something that'll make it easier for you to talk to them." She pulled a blue necklace out of her pocket and said, "This is a magic amulet. It will allow you to speak to anyone and they will understand you."

When Crane took it and wore it, he asked, "How come you were able to understand me when no one else could?"

She answered, "Because I can do magic. Folks who do magic will understand you. Do you know what magic is?"

"Well, duh. That's how I got here in the first place."

"O-kay. Why?"

"It was just an accident. Something strange was happening in a nearby valley, so I went to investigate. Turns out this goat-witch-lady's cauldron was going haywire and the smoke grabbed me and now here I am. I hope you understood that."

"Mm-hmm."

Just then, the swan's eyes glowed bright blue for a few seconds. This unsettled Crane until her eyes regained their normal blue coloring.

She then told him, "I'll make sure to hold those ooze creatures off. Just keep yourself safe if you can."

Crane asked, "Why did your eyes glow blue just now?"

"I detected those creatures. If anyone at the bakery asks, tell them you're a wizard in disguise and that you've lost your way. I'll meet you again when I can. Bye." She then took to the air.

Crane shouted, "Wait! I –"

When someone bumped against him, he lost focus of the swan. When he looked up again, she had vanished.

He thought, _Where did she go?_

Before he could wonder further, his stomach grumbled again. He tried to go inside the bakery, but he was shooed out.

Crane thought, _Now what do I do?_

Just then, a strawberry-blonde girl in a red outfit came out of a pair of double doors on the side. She noticed Crane and asked him, "Hello, birdie. Are you lost?"

He turned to her and said, "Well, I kind of am."

The girl gasped and said, "You can speak?"

He hated lying, but when the situation called for it, he had to. "Well, yeah. I am a wizard disguised as a crane." He then gestured to the amulet and continued, "See this amulet? That's how I can prove who I am because I'm stuck in this form. I was looking for some food before I continued on my way."

The girl said, "Well, you can come in the back room and eat some bread."

"That'd be nice. Thanks."

Crane had never tasted bread more delicious than this. He knew Mr. Ping would flip his lid if he knew there was something tastier than his food. Crane chuckled at the thought.

The girl – who had introduced herself as Lettie – asked, "What are you laughing about?"

Crane snapped out of his thoughts and said, "Oh, I was just remembering a friend of mine. He's a very… _touchy_ chef."

Lettie chuckled and then asked, "So how did you get stuck in this form?"

Suddenly, a man cried out, "There she is!"

Another man shouted, "It's Keen!"

A third man exclaimed, "I can see her castle!"

Lettie ushered Crane, "Come on! Keen's castle is passing by!"

Crane stood there dumbfounded as he repeated, "'Passing by'?" He then asked Lettie as he joined her up the stairs, "Excuse me. How can a castle be passing by? I mean, it would have to move or…"

He trailed off the moment they and a group of men reached the balcony. There, in the mist, was a strange machine that walked into the mist.

A man groaned, "Oh, she's gone again."

Another man said, "No, she's not. She just hid behind the clouds."

Crane stood there in stunned silence until he asked, "That was Keen's castle?"

A man playfully punched his wing and said, "Well, duh! What planet are you from?"

Crane said, "Well, actually –"

Lettie interrupted, "He's just trying to get home. He stopped here for a bite to eat."

A man said, "Well, that makes sense."

Another man said, "Yeah. You don't want to be around Keen."

A third man agreed, "They say that she preys on handsome fellows and then _tears_ their hearts out!"

This disturbed Crane, but he managed to compose himself and joke, "Well, thank goodness I'm stuck in this body, then. If I was my real self, I'd be one butt-ugly wizard. Eh-heh."

Thankfully, the others bought it and laughed with him.


End file.
